I am going to be putting 1 or 2 fancy goldfish in a 15 or 20 gallon tank (im not certain on which tank I am gettting, you see)
Im going to be using the "Penguin BIO-Wheel 150 Power Filter" by marineland
There will be smooth rocks, gravel, and live plants in the tank. (Cant have anything rough as that can damage fins)
I need help on how to cycle beforehand and when the fish are in the tank
Thanks
No trolling or ignorant answers please
15 - 20gallons is large enough for one fancy, so stick with one.
do you already have the filter? if not, I'd suggest a different one. you'll really want abiout 200gph not 150. goldfish are messy fish and need good aeration.
I'd suggest fishless cycling. As Ian pointed out you can get a small goldy and use that to cycle the tank, but you'll be endangering your goldy that way. If you cycle with your goldfish you'll need to test EVERYDAY for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. and if the ammonia or nitrite is higher than .25 ppm then you'll need to do a small water change (10% or so should be fine).
pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com a fishless cycle will give you plenty of time to make sure you have everything you need for when your golfish arrives:)
here is a REALLY simple article on how to cycle your tank without fish
http://www.ehow.com/how_5474137_do-fishl ...
You could try a fishless cycle before introducing the fish into the aquarium. Here is a website that explains the nitrogen cycle and how to cycle it fishless.
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/mana ... I myself have had very good luck with Tetra Safestart in speeding up the cycle in my tanks. It is a biological supplement that introduces nitrifying bacteria into your tank. This product is what replaced freshwater Biospira.
Hope this helps you.
Simple way ...
Set up the tank, run it for 24 hours, and add a small goldfish. One SMALL goldfish in a new 20gal will be just fine, and the tank will cycle with it in there. Then just wait for it to grow, and it will grow to need the whole 20gal.
pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com Yes you can do a full fishless cycle, but for a small goldfish it's a LOT of messing about with chemicals and looking at an empty tank. Drop in the fish, do some extra water changes for the first few weeks, and it will be just fine.
Ian
2 Full grown Fancy Goldfish will need 50 gallons at least. They can grow to be 8 "and 15-20 gallons wont last long ... Sounds like a bad choice for you. Think it over.
